ER Nurses Blog

Ok, so the title is probably a bit more negative than I would intend, but here's the question posed through a story. In the ER you see a number of patients who shouldn't be there. Or the class of patients who should be there but delayed treatment because of cost. There you are, the nurse in the ER, treating your patient. You think to yourself, "man 1/3 of my pay check is going to fund me right now treating this person." You, of course, don't think 'this person', you think, 'this person using medicaid' or whatever term you use. Some nurses make a point not to check the insurance status of patients so it doesn't impact their treatment. Others can't help but learn a bit about their ptn. Do you ever think about the roudabout way you get paid and pay for those you treat?

Why did you choose to become a nurse? Was someone in your family a nurse? Where you a ER or Scrubs fan? What made you jump into the foray of healthcare? A bit heart? the money? The change to wear scrubs to work? :P

In the ER you're prone to see more patients of all walks, sizes, and ailments. The highly transient and variety of patients seen also means behavior is less predictable. How many have been subject to patient abuse? In what form? What would you classify as patient abuse? Finally, how has your hospital addressed the concern and what have they done to protect your health?

Anybody take their job home with them? How do you keep the stress and stories, and heck even the patients, out of your mind when you leave? It's a tough question, and of course you really can't flip a switch and somehow develop short term amnesia. Any tips to debrief bad days, bad patients, or particularly traumatic days?